Watershed Poems

"I made my home west of the Sea
where water fills Sky Lake and the moon fills the river
people are frightened when they see the heights
but once they arrive they know the trail..."  – Stonehouse 1







1

Our street name is fitting at Riverside Drive
from any window the Yahara river flows
old city bridges made of quarried stone
click all day from neighborhood traffic
even though each fall these days is flooding
we know that water is not the menace
we build an entire world on top of an isthmus
lakesides swell and the dam is overridden

2

Here on our corner my yellow house glows
it sits under a young oak rising up the boulevard
the bridges are like palms handing over traffic
and the ducks on the Yahara know nothing of flooding
five years ago I saw a courtyard full of neighbors
outdoor tables lined by fine foods and drinks
September here it rains all day like a monsoon
farmers by the rural areas sit behind wet windows